


Baby Don't Hurt Me

by NoLifeAtAll



Series: Pearlina oneshots/drabbles [4]
Category: Splatoon
Genre: Awful Parents, Electrocution, F/F, fluffy gay second half, quite an angsty first half
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-27
Updated: 2018-05-27
Packaged: 2019-05-14 10:16:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14767695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoLifeAtAll/pseuds/NoLifeAtAll
Summary: A look back on Pearl's childhood and how her relationship with Marina began and developedWARNINGS: Electrocution, Awful family membersCompanion piece to "What is Love?"





	Baby Don't Hurt Me

She blew it

 

All that time that had gone into preparations and all the money her parents had spent on her as well.

 

Gone down the drain.

 

Pearl sat backstage watching the other contestants congratulate Callie and Marie for winning while the stage medic did one last check that her throat was unharmed. Of course when she had finally convinced her parents that she could compete in the contest it all had to go wrong. The shockwave simply had to go and happen when she was performing.

 

She watched on as the two winners celebrated, hugging each other as well the other contestants and eventually running over to hug an old inkling wearing a strange hat.

 

Pearl looked over at the _click clacking_ of high heels coming towards her. Her mother was a glamorous as ever with her pastel pink dress and matching high heels combined with the excessive amount of gold jewelry that she wore at all times.

 

The frown on her face showed that she was _not_ happy with her. Pearl swallowed, bracing herself for the imminent scolding.

 

“ _What_ was that, Pearl?” her mother asked icily. “I thought you said you could do it? A little shockwave shouldn’t have stopped you. Now look, two girls from nowhere won instead.” She threw her arms in the air dramatically causing Pearl to roll her eyes. “How’s this going to look, Pearl?” her mother asked sharply. “After all that money that went into this!”

 

“So that’s what you’re worried about?” Pearl asked in disbelief. “How it’s going to make you look? How much money was wasted? Not that anyone could have been hurt? Thank cod no one was!” She was breathing deeply at the end of her rant, her face paling slightly at the realization she had just talked back to her mother.

 

Her mother’s gaze was ice cold. “What was that?” Her voice was dangerously quiet but Pearl recognized the anger that was there even when no one else could. She looked down at the floor, willing the tears not to fall.

 

“Nothing, mother,” she mumbled quickly. “Forget I said anything.”

 

“It better be that way,” her mother huffed, her attention shifting onto her phone as a message came through.

 

Pearl looked over as the elderly inkling that she’d seen earlier shuffled over to them, followed by Callie and Marie. The two were holding hands and whispering to each other, glancing at her every now and again. She scowled to herself, glaring down at the floor to hide her flushed cheeks.

“Is everything alright over here?” The old man asked gently.

 

“Everything’s fine,” her mother dismissed quickly. “Pearl and I were just having a small chat.” Pearl suppressed a groan at her words. Her mother insisted on talking to her as if she was a child when she was 15 years old. She turned and motioned for Pearl to stand. “Come on, Pearl, we’re leaving.”

 

“Wait!” One of the winners – Callie, she thought it was – cried out as Pearl stood to follow her mother. “I think you did really well today! I’m sorry that the shockwave ruined your performance.” Pearl flushed slightly but nodded gratefully before running after her mother.

 

It was better not to anger her mother any more than she already had. She barely made eye contact with Pearl once she had caught up but her words were sharp. “Don’t speak like that to me again, Pearl.”

 

She didn’t say anything else or wait for an answer – just began walking away with a forced smile on her face.

 

Pearl said nothing, simply followed after her mother as she tried not to cry.

 

 

 

Pearl didn’t like many members of her family. Her mother was a cold, spiteful woman who cared more for her image than her actual daughter. Her father was a workaholic who she rarely saw and often seemed to ignore her unless told otherwise. There were various aunts, uncles, cousins and other relatives she couldn’t care to remember as well.

 

The one exception was her grandmother – a kind, caring elderly inkling that was happy to see her whenever she visited or the rare times Pearl went to visit her. Pearl called her Grandmamma – a habit she got into as a child and could barely talk but could never break herself out of.

 

Pearl adored her grandmother and couldn’t understand how such a wonderful woman could be the mother to someone like her mother. She never did figure it out but eventually gave up on finding an answer.

 

Grandmamma had come over for a short visit a year after the contest incident. Pearl was growing quickly which Grandmamma was quick to comment on that.

 

“Look at how you’re growing, Pearlie!” Grandmamma praised, a cup of coffee cradled in her hands. “You’ll be the tallest in the house soon!” Her mother who had been sat next to her took a sip of her tea before standing up and leaving the room, grabbing her phone on the way.

 

Height was not a common trait in her family. The vast majority was short and that included her mother. Pearl seemed to be on track to be one of the lucky few.

 

“Where’s mother going?” She thought out loud. “I didn’t think she was busy today.”

 

When she looked at Grandmamma, she saw that the old woman was frowning in the direction that her mother had gone. “That woman…” she grumbled under her breath, knowing

 

“Grandmamma?” Pearl asked in confusion.

 

Her grandmother seemed to remember that she was there and quickly forced a smile. “So, what kind of music have you been listening to?” Grandmamma asked quickly.

 

It was an obvious topic change but Pearl decided to humor her. She thought back to what she had been listening to that morning. “Um…there’s a new band that’s pretty good,” she chirped. “I was listening to them a bit earlier.”

 

“That’s good,” Grandmamma replied, sounding genuinely interested. “Do you think I’d like them?”

 

Pearl laughed and thought over it. “Maybe,” she chuckled.

 

Her mother re-entered the room on the phone, causing both her and her grandmother to turn and look. “All right, next Thursday at 6 then,” she sighed into the phone. “Okay, bye.” She hung up and placed the phone on the counter.

 

Grandmamma seemed to force away a frown as she turned to face Pearl again. “Pearlie, why don’t you go and get some of your music to show me?” she asked with a clearly forced cheerfulness.

 

Pearl hesitated but conceded to her grandmother’s request. She left the living room and made her way to her bedroom. It was a mess - much to her mother’s annoyance – but she always had all of her music stuff on a table near her bed. It was strangely clean – everything had its place and had to be kept there. This made it easy for her to pick up her old fashioned CD player and the CD that she had listened to earlier.

 

When she went back downstairs, both her mother and Grandmamma were silent but she could feel that something was off. The two adults weren’t looking at each other – her mother was as devoid of emotion as ever but her grandmother was clearly angry at something.

 

She cleared her throat, announcing her return. Grandmamma forced a smile on her face. “I got the music Grandmamma!” she chirped, forcing herself to act ignorant of the mood change.

 

“How wonderful!” Grandmamma said gently, turning to face her. “Let’s have a listen then!”

 

Pearl tried to ignore the fact her mother not paying attention; simply scribbling something down in a small diary she carried.

 

 

One week later and she and her mother were being driven down to the outskirts of Inkopolis. Pearl had always dreamed of going to Inkopolis but she had wanted to visit the plaza where all the exciting stuff happened rather than some rather shady place at the very edge of the city.

 

“Are you sure we can’t visit the plaza afterwards, mother?” she asked once more, her voice quiet.

 

“No,” her mother answered curtly. “We’re on a very strict timetable.”

 

“Oh.”

 

For the rest of the drive, it was silent between them. Her mother stared straight ahead while she listened to her music. Pearl was grateful when they arrived outside a rather shoddy looking building – the opposite of the kind of places her mother usually took her.

 

That should have been a red flag. She should have realized something was wrong here.

 

Her mother remained silent as she practically dragged her inside by her arm. Pearl looked around nervously as they entered. The inside wasn’t much better than the outside though a bit more polished. There were thick cables on the wall leading into a room in the back. There was a desk in the middle of the entrance room, a rather old inkling standing behind it who was flicking through a book.

 

Her mother cleared her throat to grab the inkling’s attention.

 

The inkling looked up from her book, eyes staring at her mother then moving down to her. “Can I help you?” she asked monotonously.

 

“We have an appointment with Dr. Kirk,” her mother told her bluntly.

 

The receptionist nodded, pulling out a large book from under the desk and flicking to a page. “Ah yes,” she confirmed. “Dr. Kirk should be ready for you now actually so just head on into the back.”

 

With a nod and a curt thank you, Pearl was pulled towards a door in the back of the room. The back room was a sterile white room, the only notable features being a panel of various buttons dials and a metal chair with cables and leather straps attached to it. Lamps on the ceiling lighted the room, giving it an artificial look.

 

A tall male inkling stood by the panel, fiddling with a dial. He looked up as they entered. “You must be Talia, correct?” He asked formally.

 

“Yes,” her mother answered bluntly.

 

“You’re a punctual woman, I like that,” he chuckled. “I am Dr. Kirk as you are aware.” He looked down at Pearl. “You are Pearl, I assume?”

 

Pearl kept silent, not wanting to speak to him. Her mother gave her a nudge forcing her to break her silence. “Y-yes,” she stuttered quietly.

 

“Good, good,” Dr. Kirk said happily, walking towards the strange metal chair. “If you would come sit on this chair here, Pearl.” Not wanting to argue, she shuffled over fearfully. “Good, good,” the doctor muttered quietly, lifting Pearl up and onto the chair.

 

Pearl whimpered slightly as he began tying the leather straps around her wrists, ankles, waist and chest. “Mother?” she called out pitifully. “What’s going on?” She was silenced by a thick piece of leather being put in her mouth.

 

“Bite down,” Dr. Kirk instructed her. She did so.

 

Her mother remained silent as Dr. Kirk began to place several pads that had wires attached all over. After he had finished he walked away towards the panel, beckoning her mother to follow.

 

There was quiet murmuring between the adults then Dr. Kirk flicked a switch.

 

At first it was just tingling but it very quickly turned into excruciating pain. Thankfully it only seemed to last a second as she blacked out.

 

 

When Pearl woke up she was in the car again. They had left Inkopolis she noticed though she was only barely conscious. Pearl groaned as she tried to move but her body refused to cooperate with her demands.

 

She finally managed to make her head move even though it hurt to look at her mother – who refused to look at her.

 

Pearl had always disliked her mother and was aware that she didn’t care for her, but…

 

_How could she have done this to her?_

 

 

After that incident, Pearl gained a new goal in life: move to Inkopolis, start a music career and prove to her parents that she could make it on her own.

 

She started by raising money to move out. To do this she’d need a job, which was easier said then done. None of the one’s she could find had good pay but eventually she realized she’d have to settle with that. Pearl settled on the local clothes shop, which was her best option though not great. The days were long and tedious and filled with ignorant customers. Her coworkers, however, were nice enough and when she told them of her goals, they were very encouraging. The job taught her to be more patient with people – a trait she had lacked for years.

 

On the side, her friend got her secret music lessons. She learnt that while she was okay at singing, it wasn’t quite her thing. Instead she was taught about rapping and that quickly became Pearl’s favorite and she quickly got it down. Her teacher taught her to write music and how to create good sounding backup tracks though far from perfect. Pearl realized she’d need help with that aspect…

 

But where would she get it?

 

She dismissed that question for a later time – it didn’t matter too much right now.

 

She also dismissed her mother’s snide remarks of “ _You failed to win a music contest 1 year ago, what makes you think you can do it for a living?_ ”

 

It took several years but she had done it – aged 17, she had bought a small but nice apartment in Inkopolis and had created a song to show to producers.

 

She was free of her parents at long last.

 

 

_Rejected again_

 

Pearl scowled as she walked through the square, hands stuffed in the pockets of her coat to protect them from the cold. Yet another producer had turned her away. It wasn’t that she didn’t understand why – her only song was incomplete. No matter how hard she tried there always seemed to be something _missing_ but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was.

 

Two years of going to producers and nothing to show for all her efforts.

 

Maybe her mother was right – maybe she couldn’t do it.

 

_Crash_

 

Pearl yelped as she was pulled out of her thoughts by the crash of something falling over. Whirling around, she caught sight of a rolling garbage can lid in a shadowy alleyway.

 

_Should I go look? Should I just keep walking?_

She stood and stared for a second. “Fuck it,” she grumbled eventually, walking into the alleyway.

 

At first glance it was empty but then she noticed a shadowy figure trying their best to hide.

 

“Hey, I see you, you know?” she called out. “Show yourself!”

 

The figure flinched but didn’t move otherwise. She could feel the figure staring at her.

 

“I won’t hurt you, I promise,” she huffed eventually. “You scared me knocking over that bin, y’know?”

 

“I’m sorry!” The figure squeaked quickly, clearly female judging by the voice. “I was just trying to catch my breath then it fell!” The figure stood up and edged awkwardly into the light.

 

_Oh carp_

 

She was an octoling and she was pretty with her dark skin and black tentacles with teal tips. She was wearing something that resembled armour though it barely covered anything.

 

_Wasn’t she cold wearing that?_

“Aren’t you cold wearing that?” Pearl asked bluntly.

 

The octoling blushed, cheeks going green. “…A little,” she mumbled quietly. “I…don’t have anything else though.”

 

Pearl felt a bit more sympathetic towards the octoling. Her first year in Inkopolis she could barely afford heating in her apartment. This meant her home was cold most evenings. She had accumulated an extraordinary collection of various winter coats, blankets and other such items to deal with it.

 

“You just planning on staying in this alley?” she asked curiously. “You’ll freeze at this time of year!” They only blushed harder and nodded meekly.

 

She had an awful idea.

 

“You…could come stay at my place?” she suggested awkwardly. “It’s much warmer than this alleyway! There’s also food and drink and all that other stuff.”

 

 _This is an awful idea_.

 

“You would…let me stay with you?” The octoling asked hurriedly. “That’s…” They paused to think. “…I’ll take you up on that actually. Are you sure that’s ok?”

 

Pearl gave them a small but genuine smile. “Wouldn’t have offered if it wasn’t!” she assured her. “Do you have a name?”

 

“Marina.”

 

“Huh. I like that name. Well Marina, I’m Pearl.”

 

 

It was slightly awkward having the octoling staying in the apartment. It wasn’t that Marina was a bad roommate – far from it, in fact! She was possibly the sweetest person she’d met even if she didn’t completely understand emotions or what she was talking about a lot of the time. She was also a bit of a neat freak, since arriving the living room – where Marina decided to sleep in though she had been offered the other bedroom – has been spotless and God forbid Pearl misplace something. The last time she had accidentally placed her phone in the wrong place, Marina had burst into her room with a huff to tell her to stop.

 

Pearl thought it was kind of adorable.

 

There were times Pearl forgot there was someone else in the apartment. Such was the case that morning as she stumbled into the kitchen for a drink. Her tired mind had been slow to remember they had company so when she heard a quiet singing from the other room; well, it scared her a little. The singing however was surprisingly good which piqued her interest.

 

Even more surprising was that it was _Marina_ who was singing.

 

Pearl barely registered the fact that she’d dropped her glass until Marina stopped singing and whirled around to see her.

 

“Holy carp,” she said, aware that her voice was becoming louder with each word. “YOU CAN SING?”

 

The octoling blushed and looked away, clearly embarrassed at being caught. “W-well...” she mumbled quietly. “I try. I don’t think I’m that good.”

 

“That’s not true and you know it,” Pearl chuckled dryly. “Mar, that was amazing! You have one of the best voices I’ve ever heard.”

 

Pearl mentally hit herself for letting the nickname slip out.

 

Marina’s eyes widened slightly at her words and her tentacles began to wriggle around wildly. “Really? I wasn’t even trying,” the octoling rambled shyly. “I’m sure that’s not true, I mean – “

 

Pearl groaned internally at the girl’s lack of confidence. She gave her a sharp look to cut off her nervous rambling.

 

“I’m really not the type to lie about this, Mar,” she stated bluntly. “Your voice is good and that song is good!”

 

An idea came to her.

“Pearl?” Marina asked timidly. Pearl was vaguely aware of her fidgeting.

 

Pearl opted to ignore the octoling while she thought, mumbling quietly to herself. “Yes, it’s a good idea!” she rethought. “No, definitely not.”

 

“Why would she...?”

 

“Pearl are you ok?” Marina asked suddenly, bringing her out of her thoughts.

 

Pearl looked up at her as she decided that it was worth at least asking. “I have a suggestion…” She began then paused to gather her confidence. “You know I’m trying to get into the music biz, right?”

 

“Biz?” Marina asked blankly, her nose scrunching up adorably in confusion.

 

“Business.”

 

“Oh.” A pause. “Yeah, I know.”

 

“Well, as you also probably know, I’m struggling in doing that,” she continued. “You told me that you came to Inkopolis because of the Squid Sisters, right? And that you wanted to stay in Inkopolis?”

 

The octoling nodded in confirmation. “Yes, I did tell you that.”

 

 _Here goes nothing_.

 

“Well, maybe we could help each other out,” she suggested lightly, her eyes lighting up as she became more excited at the possibility of her idea becoming real. “We can join together and form a duo – a bit like the Squid Sisters but different as well.”

 

She watched as Marina’s eyes widened. There was a gleam of excitement in her new friend’s eyes. There was a moment of silence, which felt like it stretched on for years as Pearl anticipated their answer.

 

Marina’s face broke out into a wide grin. “I’d be happy to help!” The octoling chirped happily.

 

Pearl felt herself light up as they agreed to join her.

 

Maybe she wasn’t able to do it alone but there was a possibility she could achiever her goals with Marina’s help.

 

 

Pearl had once wondered if partnering with Marina was a mistake. Maybe it would have been better to keep her mouth shut.

 

Oh how wrong she was.

Not only was Marina a natural singer but she was also an amazing DJ, making use of the old dusty turntables Pearl never used. They seemed to work together perfectly with Marina writing the music while Pearl wrote down lyrics that randomly came to her. When it came to their songs they were perfectionists – every little detail had to be perfect or the track would be unsuitable. The sessions were long but fun. The two grew closer than ever before much to Pearl’s happiness.

 

She honestly couldn’t imagine what life would be like without Marina anymore.

 

A year passed and they had become immensely successful much to their surprise. Pearl was unsure what to do with the money they were earning but Marina seemed to know exactly what she wanted – a new motorcycle. Earlier that year, she had succeeded in getting a license and Pearl had celebrated by getting an older model motorcycle that they could afford.

 

Marina had been overjoyed which made her happy.

 

Recently, however, it had been falling apart and so after the success of their debut single Marina had bought a new one. Pearl remembered that night well – going to the small park outside the city just to stare at the stars, finding out that Marina had nicknamed her ‘Pearlie’ (her heart had almost stopped at that – no one had called her that since Grandmamma) and just talking for ages.

 

An idea came to her that night. Marina’s DJ table had recently begun to fall apart due to age and they were unable to fix it.

 

Pearl wandered down into their studio where they kept the computer. Marina had gone out shopping that day, said something about wanting some time for herself (she understood). It gave her the perfect opportunity to order a secret present.

 

She had just finished ordering one of the nicest models she could find and afford when there was a knock at the door.

 

_Marina must have forgotten her keys again_

Humming to herself, Pearl made her way to the front door and opened it. She was about to tease her roommate about forgetting her keys when she realized who it was.

 

Her parents.

 

“Hello Pearl,” her mother greeted stiffly, forcing a smile. “It’s been a while.”

 

“3 years,” Pearl muttered quietly. She shook her head with a sigh. “Please come in,” she greeted politely, stepping aside to allow them both in. They walked past her without even a glance in her direction.

 

It felt like she was back at her parents’ house. Tiny. Insignificant.

 

 _Worthless_.

 

Her mother eyed the apartment’s layout; there was a clear disapproval in her gaze. The apartment was relatively simple in its layout, the main hall doubled as a living room and a dining room. Then there were the two bedrooms – Marina had _finally_ moved into one of them and was midway through making it hers – as well as the other necessary rooms. A spare room had been converted into a recording studio over a course of the year.

 

Pearl should have expected that her mother would disapprove of it.

 

“Surely you could have afforded something better, Pearl,” her mother commented snidely.

 

Pearl glared at her mother’s back angrily. “Actually, no, I couldn’t,” she responded bluntly. “I bought it with money I earned.”

 

“Well, you could have at least decorated better,” she said coolly, moving to sit on a sofa. Marina had insisted on buying another one eventually for more social situations. Pearl supposed this counted as a ‘social situation’ as unwanted it was.

 

“So, what brings you to my humble abode?” Pearl asked, smoothly changing the topic as she sat on the other sofa. “You haven’t tried to contact me in three years and all of a sudden you visit out of the blue? Something’s up, alright.”

 

Her father – a quiet man who barely talked to her – cleared his throat as he sat next her mother. “We thought it was a good time to check in and see how you were doing,” he explained quietly.

 

“After 3 years you finally care?” Pearl asked harshly, not bothering to cover up her hostility. “Let me guess, you only ‘care’ now because I’ve become successful and you see an opportunity to make money.” She looked at both her parents with a raised eyebrow. “Am I right?”

 

They remained silent. It was all the answer she needed – she’d hit the nail on the head.

 

“Typical,” she muttered. “Just typical.” Pearl could feel her emotions override her more logical side. “You never cared, did you?” she accused, voice raising to a yell. “I lived with you for 17 years and _you never cared about me_!”

 

“Pearl, that’s not true – “ Her father tried to reason but she was fed up of listening to their bullshit.

 

“Oh, that’s bullshit and you know it!” she laughed humorlessly. “Why else would you have had me electrocuted?”

 

There was a loud thud followed by a gasp.

Pearl whirled around to see Marina staring with wide eyes, mouth hanging open. There was a box on the ground from being dropped. “Y-you were…?” she stuttered. “E-electrocuted?”

 

Pearl realized she had never told Marina about that. She had meant to eventually but didn’t know how to bring it up. She rarely talked about it if at all.

 

“Uh…”

 

“Who are you?” Her mother cut her off, staring at Marina. “What’s an _octoling_ doing here?” She turned to face Pearl. “Well?”

 

“Mother, father,” Pearl introduced uneasily. “This is Marina, my roommate and the other half of Off the Hook.”

 

Marina seemed to recover from her shock enough to say a quick “hello” before wordlessly picking up her box and walking briskly into the studio.

 

“An _octoling_ , Pearl?” Her mother hissed once she had left the room. “Of all people to partner with, you had to go with an octoling?”

 

Pearl sent her mother a dirty look, snapping out of the shock of Marina’s sudden appearance. “So what if she’s an octoling?” She stated. “She’s a better person than either of you!”

 

Her mother’s cool façade seemed to break, mouth twisting into a frown. She was angry. “Excuse me?” she asked sharply. “How _dare_ you?”

 

“Oh, I dare!” Pearl challenged. “All my life all you’ve been is cold and dismissive! _You had me electrocuted because I was growing too tall!_ ”

 

“ That doesn’t give you the right to talk to me like that,” Her mother huffed.

 

“Yes, it does.”

 

Marina’s voice was quiet as she re-entered the room. There was a deep anger beneath the quietness though, shown by the way she was glaring at her parents.

 

“Excuse me?” Her mother asked in disbelief.

 

“I usually say to respect your elders,” Marina continued. “But what have you done for Pearl to respect you?”

 

“You’re an octoling,” her mother dismissed quickly. “What would you know about respect? You’re probably only here to steal!”

 

Marina barked out a laugh. It wasn’t her usual laugh – happy, gentle and genuine – but a cold, mocking one. “I know more about respect than you,” she commented calmly. “And I promise that stealing is the last thing on my mind.”

Her mother opened her mouth to speak but Pearl cut her off quickly. “Look, you’re clearly unwanted here,” she sighed. “So leave.”

 

Her mother’s only response was a cold glare through narrowed eyes before standing up and storming towards the door, her father following soon after.

 

The door slammed shut as they left. The sound seemed to trigger something in Pearl and before she even realized it, she was crying. She tried to stop herself but found herself unable to.

 

“Pearlie? What’s wrong?” Marina asked in alarm, moving to kneel in front of her. She just shook her head, unable to bring herself to speak. “Did I say something wrong?”

 

The question made her chuckle slightly. Pearl sniffled slightly and shook her head. “No…you didn’t...” she assured her friend. She frantically wiped away tears. “Sorry, it’s just I, uh, never thought I would stand up to them like that.”

 

Marina pressed a hand to her cheek to comfort her before pulling the inkling into a hug. Pearl squeaked in surprise and she was sure her cheeks looked like a tomato she was blushing so much.

 

Marina had never hugged her before. Sure there were the times she placed her hand on Pearl’s arm or shoulder to comfort her but it had never gone further than that.

 

“You did really well,” the octoling murmured encouragingly into her hair, squeezing her slightly.

 

Pearl remained silent as she wrapped her arms around Marina’s waist slowly, hugging her back.

 

She decided she liked Marina’s hugs.

 

 

Their career only went upward. Their first proper album was a huge success and launched them into stardom. They were such a success that they were asked to host the news after the area of focus moved to Inkopolis Square. They had been overjoyed at their new position as idols and loved the job. The public seemed to wholeheartedly accept the change.

 

Then the Great Zapfish went missing and it all went to shit.

 

Marina began getting strange looks from the other inklings and there were accusing mutterings behind their back. Pearl was now rumored to be helping Marina in some grand conspiracy or whatever.

 

She shrugged it off; she was used to snide comments by now.

 

She worried about Marina however. She had always been worried of other’s opinions on her and now it seemed her fears were coming true.

 

She seemed to shrug it off, however. Whenever Pearl asked if she was ok, she just smiled and said she was fine. Pearl didn’t quite believe her and the octoling now spent most of the time between rotations on her phone.

 

She could try and lie to herself and say she only worried as a friend but, as mentioned, it would be a lie.

 

Marina was way more than a friend to her.

 

It was the same today. A crewmember came in to remind them that the next rotation was in 10 minutes. Marina said a quick halfhearted thank you then returned to her phone.

 

Pearl decided enough was enough.

 

“Maaaaaar,” she pretended to whine, trying to get her friend’s attention.

 

She was ignored. Pearl would be lying if it didn’t hurt slightly.

 

“Mar.”

 

Ignored again.

 

“Marmar!”

 

She hated using that nickname – it didn’t suit Marina at all.

 

“Marina!”

 

The octoling finally looked up from her phone, annoyance clear on her face. “What is it, Pearl?” she huffed impatiently.

 

“Are you sure you’re ok?” Pearl asked softly in concern. “You’ve just been staring at your screen all day when we’re not presenting.”

 

“It’s one way to ignore the looks I’m getting,” Marina explained curtly. She refused to make eye contact with her.

 

_Wait what?_

 

“Mar…” Pearl sighed sadly. “I didn’t realize it was affecting you that much. I’m sorry I didn’t notice.”

 

The octoling shook her head dismissively. “It’s fine, I’m used to covering up my emotions,” she said quickly as her attention went back to her phone.

 

What did _that_ mean?

 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked slowly.

 

“It doesn’t matter, Pearlie.”  


“Mar, what did you mean by that?”  


“I said it doesn’t matter!”  


“But-“ Pearl went to say that she understood having to cover up emotions; that she just wanted to make sure she was okay.

 

Marina slamming her hand down on the table cut her off. Pearl jumped back in shock, eyes going wide. Marina _never_ resorted to force if she could help it.

 

“ _It. Doesn’t. Matter._ ” Marina’s voice was dangerously quiet.

 

The moment of silence that followed was tense.

 

“Okay,” Pearl mumbled quietly, still recovering from the shock. She looked away from Marina for a moment to calm down.

 

There was muttering at the window. Pearl turned to see a group of inklings staring at them having obviously seen what had just occurred. Every now and again they’d point at them. They soon realized that they had been spotted, however, and scattered.

 

A jellyfish came walking onto set. Pearl was unsure whether it was to tell them about the next rotation or to ask if everything was okay.

 

Without a word or warning, however, Marina had leaped out of her chair and ran off set.

 

“Marina!” Pearl called out in a panic but was ignored.

 

She stared blankly at the exit Marina had gone through, trying her best to shove aside the aching in her heart.

 

_She left. She left. She got angry with you and left._

_Why did I have to keep on asking?_

_My fault. It’s all my fault._

 

The thoughts kept on coming despite her efforts to suppress them. Her eyes were stinging as she sat on a chair, hunched up in a ball slightly.

 

The minutes dragged on by but eventually map rotation rolled around. It went by blissfully quickly probably because there was no one to talk to.

 

As soon as it finished, Pearl grabbed both her and Marina’s bags and stormed off of the set to chase after her friend.

 

 

It took longer to get home than usual. She usually hitched a ride on Marina’s motorcycle but with Marina having left early she was left with walking.

 

Pearl didn’t care, however. All she cared about was making sure Marina was okay.

 

The apartment seemed deader than ever. None of the lights were switched on. The only things that were really out of place were a pair of shoes taken off in a hurry.

 

There was quiet sobbing from Marina’s bedroom.

 

Pearl placed both bags down carelessly as she headed towards the room. The door was ajar as Pearl reached it. She gently pushed it open and looked in.

 

Marina was sat on the bed, holding a cushion that resembled her squid icon. She was clearly crying and Pearl felt her heart break slightly.

 

She caused this.

 

“Marina?” she said quietly.

 

The octoling seemed surprised by her voice as she turned to look at her. “P-Pearlie?” Marina whispered in surprise. “What are you doing here?”

 

Pearl slowly entered the room fully, closing the door behind her. “I left after the map rotation,” she explained with forced casualness. “Wasn’t worth staying.”

 

“But map rotations don’t end until – “  


“I don’t care,” Pearl said bluntly as she sat opposite Marina on the bed. “It wasn’t worth staying if you weren’t there.”

  
Marina blushed at her words. “Pearlie, we could lose our jobs over this!” she reminded her.

 

That was true but Pearl realized she didn’t care for the job if it meant that Marina was unhappy.

 

“Fuck the jobs!” Pearl yelled in exasperation. “I care about you more than our job, Mar!”

 

Marina seemed surprised at her words. “Really?” she squeaked.

 

“Well, duh. I’d pick you over them any day.”

 

_I’m going to have to tell her, aren’t I?_

 

Pearl felt her cheeks heat up as she gathered up her courage. “I’m just gonna get this out of the way,” she stated.

 

The way Marina tilted her head in confusion was adorable and _really not helping_. “Say what?” she asked curiously.

 

“I like you,” she said quickly, forcing herself to ignore Marina’s eyes widening. “As in, more than a friend.”

 

“Pearlie…I…”

 

“You don’t have to feel the same,” she rambled on. “Hell, you probably don’t, I just wanted to get that out there. I mean, why would _you_ like someone like – “

 

Marina kissing her cut her off. Before she could react it was over but they were both blushing.

 

“Does that answer your question?” Marina teased, moving her hands to cradle Pearl’s face.

 

Pearl was left dumbfounded for a moment so she simply nodded. “Yeah...” she mumbled quietly once she found herself able to speak. She reached up and grabbed Marina’s face gently. “Now get back here.”

 

Marina laughed as she was pulled in for another kiss.

 

Pearl could very much get used to this.

 

 

Pearl found herself awake in the middle of the night one month later. Marina was holding her tightly. Her vision was blocked slightly by a tentacle that had decided to attach itself to her face. Gently she removed it as she turned around to look at her sleeping girlfriend.

 

_Girlfriend_

 

She still got a warm happy feeling each time she was reminded that they were girlfriends.

 

Marina always looked so peaceful and content when sleeping and Pearl felt herself fall even more in love.

 

She found her thoughts going back over her life. How her mother had never cared for her in the slightest; how her father was barely there and ignored her when he was; how Grandmamma was the only one nice to her growing up.

 

Pearl still didn’t feel like she was good enough for Marina and maybe she never would but she wouldn’t give this up for the world.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Oof so this took me a week to write
> 
> I'm aware Pearl's parents may be OOC from what we've heard of them (they actually sound nice in the dialogue we're given) but for purposes of fic they're like that.


End file.
